What plays or musicals are you most looking forward to this summer?
I’m looking forward to several that will offer something that central Ohio hasn’t seen before
– or hasn’t seen in a long time.
Central Ohio has a diverse array of theater companies and programs - almost 70, large and
small, at my last informal count, from professional theater producers and presenters to
semi-professional troupes, community theaters and college programs.
Happily, a good number of them don’t take the summer off.
So there’s a vast range of options to choose from as theatergoers (and critics) plan their
summer entertainment calendar.
Personally, if I had a choice (and I often don’t as a critic), I’d be much more interested in
seeing theater works that I haven’t seen before instead of yet another revival - however
well-staged - of more familiar fare.
Before listing the handful of shows that I’m anticipating the most for the summer of 2014,
though, I don’t want to dismiss the central Ohio troupes that have chosen to tackle ancient or
modern classics.
From Shakespeare (including tonight’s opening of
Hamlet at the Actors’ Theatre of Columbus for a month’s run in Schiller Park) to modern
musicals, an old script can be made to seem fresh through excellent acting, smart directing and a
topnotch design.

Especially in the case of brand-name musicals that have established
reputations for reliable entertainment, many people never tire of savoring their great tunes - even
on a second or third hearing.
Thus, I fully expect several summer musicals to to do well. both at the box office and in
terms of the solid talent involved onstage.
Among the safest bets: CATCO’s season-ending production of
Always, Patsy Cline... (May 28 through June 15 in the Riffe Center’s Studio Two Theatre),
Weathervane Playhouse’s production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s
Oklahoma! (June 26 to July 5 at 100 Price Rd., Newark); and Otterbein Summer Theatre’s
season-opening
The Fantasticks! (June 5-21 in Cowan Hall’s Fritsche Theatre, 30 S. Grove St. on the
Westerville campus.)
What most intrigues me as I consider upcoming productions, as I suspect it does many other
theater-lovers, is the chance to see the area premiere or Columbus premiere of a play or
musical I haven’t seen yet.
I’m not talking so much about brand-new plays, which vary drastically in their level of
competence and quality.
I’m thinking, insted, of upcoming shows with strong ‘word of mouth’ because of their
previous success elsewhere - such as London, New York, Chicago, Louisville, Settle or other major
theater centers.

Any theatergoer has experienced disappointment as well as delights when
seeing a highly anticipated play or musical for the first time - and sometimes, the more highly
anticipated the show, the greater the disappointment.
With that important caveat, here are just a few of the summer productions that I’m betting
(and hoping) will reward the time and money of critics and theatergoers:

The Divine Sister
Short North Stage will present the area premiere of Charles Busch’s off-Broadway comedy
about nuns with secrets.
Why I’m anticipating it: Because I’ve seen several of Busch’s plays (such as
The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife) and I usually laugh a lot. Also, Short North Stage is
developing a good reputation for its productions of recent New York hits.

IF YOU GO

The Divine Sister runs May 29 through June 15 in the Garden Theater, 1187 N. High St. For
tickets, call 614-725-4042 or visit
www.shortnorthstage.org

Elizabeth Rex
Evolution Theatre Company will present the area premiere of Canadian playwright Timothy
Findley’s historic drama about politics, love and theater in the Elizabethan era. The plot revolves
around a meeting between Queen Elizabeth 1, interested in a diversion while awaiting the execution
she ordered of the Earl of Essex (a man she may have loved), and a Shakespearean actor well-known
for playing women’s roles.
Why I’m anticipating it: Coincidentally, I happened to catch the world premiere of this play
in 2000 during an American Theatre Critics Association conference at the Stratford
Festival in Ontario, Canada. It worked rather well - and makes me eager to see it again.

Dames at Sea
Otterbein Summer Theatre will end its season with this rarely revived musical parody of
1930s-era Busy Berkeley-style movie musicals. Bernadette Peters originated the role of the
understudy who steps into a Broadway role and becomes a star in the first off-off-Broadway
production in 1966.
Why I’m anticipating it: I’ve heard a lot over the years about this musical, whose success
paved the way for several other musical spoofs such as
The Drowsy Chaperone, Yet, I’ve never seen it before. Thanks to Otterbein, I’ll get my
chance.